


Citrus Side Dressing

by Sappho82



Category: citrus - サブロウタ | citrus - Saburouta
Genre: Bickering, Canon Compliant, F/F, Frenemies, HaruMatsu, HaruMatsu is endgame, Harumi bestgirl, Slow Burn, falling in like
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-04-07
Updated: 2018-09-23
Packaged: 2019-04-19 13:17:57
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 3,112
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14238129
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Sappho82/pseuds/Sappho82
Summary: A collection of HaruMatsu stories.This is Harumi and Matsuri's story based on the chronological events in the manga, using certain scenes as a launching point for each chapter. Basically, how they end up together despite Matsuri being a little shit.The first story begins in the middle of Volume 6 of the manga, after the love manual/first date arc.





	1. Don't Touch Me

**Author's Note:**

> Our story begins in the middle of Volume 6 of the manga, where Yuzu starts going to work in the cafe in order to buy the rings.

Mizusawa Matsuri approaches the gazebo tucked in a secluded corner of Aihara Academy, watching the comical scene unfold before her. The pink-haired girl nods her head to the trap music blaring in her giant headphones as she watches Yuzu wrestle Harumi to the ground with an aggressive hug, while Nene looks on like she’s going to nut herself. 

“Nene-san, your nose is bleeding,” Matsuri says in a completely neutral tone as she steps into the gazebo while sliding her headphones off and placing them around her neck.  Yuzu and Harumi both look up at the same time, first at Matsuri, and then at Nene. “Ehhhh???” both girls exclaim. Yuzu immediately jumps off of Harumi and stares in horror at Nene thinking, _girl you are so weird._

Harumi, who is still sitting on the floor rubbing her bottom because Yuzu practically tackled her when she said she would cover for her about her secret part-time job, glances up to see Matsuri watching her intently. When their eyes meet, Matsuri gives her a wink.

 _What does this devil girl want_ , Harumi thinks, frowning to herself. _She’s backed off from trying to get with Yuzu and even made nice with the Prez, getting her to help her with homework and junk – but these past few she keeps making eyes at me_. Harumi shakes her head slowly. _Kids these days._

Yuzu is now rummaging in her bag for a tissue or anything to plug up Nene’s nose. Nene is still smiling like a fool and says, “It’s ok Yuzu-senpai, don’t worry. I just get so excited when I see you and Harumi-senpai touch each other in such an intimate way. I just find it so erotic that I can’t handle it, so I get like…this,” Nene gestures to her general nose/face area.

At this ridiculous confession, Matsuri breaks from her normal deadpan expression and starts to giggle uncontrollably. She presses her thumb and forefinger to the bridge of her nose and tries to stem the laughter but to no avail. Soon, peals of laughter bubble out of her and she is clutching her stomach.

Harumi is also trying not to laugh because she’s one half of the direct cause of Nomura Nene’s nosebleed, after all. What she **_is_** doing is watching Matsuri from the corner of her eye. This is the first time she’s seen Matsuri so unguarded. Her carefree laughter transforms her face into something….adorable. _Yep, this little pain in the ass can look adorable. Ugh._

Of course, anyone who looks closely enough can see that Matsuri is a very pretty girl. She isn’t heartbreakingly gorgeous like Mei with her raven hair and delicate features. She’s not a fresh-faced beauty like Yuzu with her brilliant smile. When standing beside the Aihara sisters, it’s easy to overlook the brooding girl. But Harumi is actually very observant, and she **has** noticed that Matsuri is a very beautiful girl indeed.

Harumi slowly stands up from the floor and then thumbs the screen of her phone to see the clock. “Hey Yuzucchi, you need to head to your part-time job, right?”

“Oh crap, yeah I need to go now, it takes like an hour to get to the café,” says Yuzu, shoving school papers into her bag. She starts to dash out of the gazebo, then after a few steps stops and turns around. “Sorry about leaving you with our history report Harumi. I’ll totally make this up to you!” she says with an apologetic smile. “Oh, and sorry Matsuri, I’ll catch you later. Bye guys!”

The three girls watch the blonde take off running towards the back of the nearest school building, taking the long way to the school gates to avoid going through the main entrance area, where the student council was likely to spot her.

Matsuri turns to Nene and says, “Hey, on my way here I heard something about AKB48 having a surprise concert at the mall. Apparently the one girl who’s your favorite is going to be there.”

Nene jumps up and gasps, “Really? Now? Are you sure? At the mall?” Her eyes are wide with excitement.

Matsuri nods slowly and says, “Yeah, pretty sure. You should head over there now if you don't want to miss it.” At that, Nene shoulders her backpack, and says “Ok see you tomorrow Harumi-senpai, bye Matsuri-san!” then runs off towards the main entrance, taking the shortest way.

Harumi turns to face Matsuri and gives her a level stare. “AKB48 aren’t really at the mall, are they?”

“Heck no.”

“You’re terrible, Matsuri.”

Matsuri has a mischievous smile as she makes a little shrug and then leans against the low wall of the side of the gazebo. She bends her arms behind her to rest her palms against the top of the railing and gives the older girl a smoldering stare. “I just wanted to be alone with Taniguchi-senpai. Nene-chan is a sweet kid, but I thought we could have a more enjoyable time alone.”

“Nene is older than you,” says Harumi, shaking her head at the thought of this middle schooler calling Nomura Nene a kid.

Matsuri dismisses the fact with a wave of her hand. “Can we go hang out at your house?”

“What? No. Go home, Matsuri.”

The younger girl pouts for a moment and then says, “But I came all this way, and now with Yuzu-chan gone there’s no one else to hang out with me.” Matsuri looks down with a pitiful look and sighs deeply. Matsuri’s practiced reaction tells Harumi that Matsuri had expected her to say no to her suggestion.

Harumin was about to say, _Tell it to someone who cares_ , but she spots Aihara Mei walking across the green over Matsuri’s shoulder. The student council president was purposefully striding about 50 yards away, like she was looking for a certain someone, but trying to not look like she was looking for someone.

The black-haired girl in the gazebo says “Shit!” then grabs the collar of Matsuri’s hoodie and yanks her towards her. Matsuri’s eyes open wide in surprise and she starts to say “Whaa-” when Harumi pushes down on her shoulders, making her land on her butt in front of Harumi’s feet.

Matsuri shrieks, “Owww what the hell! You hurt my butt goddamm..”

The sound of Matsuri’s cries catches Aihara Mei’s ears and she turns towards the gazebo. She sees Taniguchi Harumin standing behind a wall that comes up to her waist looking straight at her. _Ah, there you are. Yuzu, you better have a good reason why you’ve been disappearing after school every day and coming home super late._ Mei had spent the last half hour since the bell rang trying to find the blonde. She was being discreet about it, so she couldn't exactly ask anyone if they’ve spotted Yuzu or her delinquent gang. Her eyes scan the gazebo and the surrounding area and realizes that Harumi is alone. She sighs and walks towards the gazebo anyway, deciding that she was just going to have to shake down Harumi for the truth.

In the gazebo, Harumi smacks the side of Matsuri’s head and hisses through gritted teeth, “Shut up, shut up. Mei is coming over here, and if she finds you here we are all going to be in so much-”

Above her head, Matsuri hears Harumi clear her throat and say, “Hi Prez. How’s it going?”

“I’m doing well, thank you. Have you seen Yuzu?” Upon hearing Mei’s voice, Matsuri stills between Harumi’s legs. She wasn’t afraid of Mei, but she knew that Harumi and Yuzu would be extremely pissed if she got caught trespassing by the student council president. Yuzu especially would get bent out of shape if Mei catches her, and Matsuri didn't want to listen to her carrying on about how she needs to stay out trouble when it comes to anything related to her straight-laced stepsister. _How boring_ , Matsuri thinks. She noiselessly settles her down into a comfortable sitting position, ready to wait out this conversation between the two dark-haired girls.

“Ah Yuzucchi, yes. I’ve seen her.”

There’s a pause, and Matsuri smirks thinking about the look that Mei must be giving Harumi right now. From the way Harumi twitches, it must be Mei’s special don't-fuck-with-me stare. The slight movement draws Matsuri’s attention to the fact that she is sitting between Harumi’s legs. A feeling of elation comes over her, quickly followed by a hot flash all over her body. She chose the right day to make the long trek from her middle school to Aihara Academy to see her sexy little minx. Not even in her most optimistic schemes did she see herself getting this far with Harumi this soon. _Omg, score. This day is awesome. Thank you, Yuzu-chan._

“Well, where is she?”

“Yuzucchi is….she went to get some stuff from the library so that…”

Matsuri gazes lovingly at Harumin’s creamy white thigh right in front of her face. _Ah, legs for days. They're even more exquisite up close_. She raises her left hand that was resting on the floor to gently touch the back of Harumin’s ankle.

“…we could have all of the things we need for our big study session…”

The older girl stops in midsentence when she feels Matsuri’s fingers on the back of her lower leg. She tries to discreetly nudge the hand off, and she starts to talk again but she feels Matsuri’s fingers slowly going up her calves. _Dammit Matsuri, I’m going to kill you –_

 _“…_ at my house cus we have a lot to study for, because as you know Madam President, exams are..”

Matsuri’s fingers were now at the back of Harumin’s knees, and when she starts to softly caress the sensitive flesh there, Harumin’s breath comes out in a hiss, “…co-coming up soon!”

Mei frowns thoughtfully. _A study session, huh? Well, Yuzu certainly needs it. If she doesn’t do really well in the finals she’s going to need to take supplementary classes in the summer for sure. But Harumin is lying to me about something, look at how she’s nervously bouncing on her leg…_

“So you’re saying the two of you are going straight to your house to spend the evening to study?” Mei asks, crossing her arms against her chest.

“Yes...no!” Harumi blurts out in a mix of frustration and panic. Matsuri’s fingers were now travelling up the back of her thigh. Her touch was warm against her skin but feather-light. All Harumin could register in her mind was the proximity between Matsuri’s fingers, her crotch, and Matsuri’s head. Harumi couldn't believe that she actually placed herself in this triangle of dangerous sexual parts. _Matsuri’s_ sexual parts, no less.

“No?” Mei asks, impatience in her beautiful features. 

“No, I meant yes. We are going to my house to have a study session.” Harumi says slowly, concentrating on making complete sentences that will satisfy the student council president. The fingers on her right leg disappear, and then she feels Matsuri’s other hand tracing a line up her left calf, but at a slightly faster speed this time. She curses Matsuri in her mind as her breath starts to hitch.  

Mei nods curtly and says, “All right. Please tell Yuzu to come home in time for dinner.” With that, she turns around and heads back towards the school building.

When the raven-haired girl is safely out of sight, Harumin reaches down to grab Matsuri by the collar and hauls her to her feet and brings them face to face. She resists the urge to shake her by the neck. “Matsuri. You little shit. I saved you from getting found out by the Prez. You know she would have ripped you a new one if she found you here again. Why the hell were you feeling up my leg, you little pervert!”

To Harumi’s chagrin, Matsuri was just looking up at her sweetly and not even trying to shake off her hold on her collar. The younger girl looked like she was perfectly content to just stand there and let Harumi lay into her. Harumi made a sound of exasperation and released the girl.

“If you pull something like that again, I’m going to kick your ass, Matsuri.”

“I can’t wait, Taniguchi-senpai.”

Harumi glares at Matsuri for several seconds, turns on her heel, snatches her bag from the floor and walks away.

Standing alone in the gazebo, Matsuri uses her thumb to unlock the screen and tap on the photo app. She stares at the photo she took a couple of minutes ago for a few seconds. She smiles happily to herself before tapping on the Trash icon. With the photo deleted, she pockets her phone and runs after Harumin saying, “Wait up Taniguchi-senpai! Let’s go get some crepes!”


	2. You can stand under my umbrella, ella, ella, eh, eh, eh

“God dammit, a motherfucking _Mei_!” Matsuri yelled into her mic when she saw the wall of ice blocking the only exit.

Worse, her team was now trapped in this fucking cellar, and they were going to get picked off in a chain of kills. She had a feeling she was playing with a bunch of losers when most of them were trying to get kills at the spawn camp instead of defending the choke point.

Sure enough, in front of her, their Pharah took a headshot from a Widowmaker. “Oh come on!” the Australian dude playing Tracer whined like a little _bitch_ in her headphones.  He was down too. Matsuri smashed the keys to back up, but the other team’s Mei was trained on her with that damn frost gun.

“Fucking dicks!” she yelled again when Mei's blue ice encased her. Matsuri didn't wait for the other player to finish her off. She tapped a few keys and left the match.

Matsuri banged the table with her fist, making her bottle of Ramune jump. She wondered, and not for the first time, if the reason why losing to Mei in a match infuriated her was because the damage hero shared a name with a certain student council president. She probably wouldn't have lost her cool if she was killed by Sombra or something.

She wasn't the least bit sorry that she ragequit on her team. They were all a bunch of morons. She also wasn't worried about being penalized for leaving the game. This was the first game she’d left in five weeks.

Matsuri sighed as she yanked off her headseat. Oh well, she’d been playing for almost three hours, it was time to head out anyway. She picked up her phone and tapped a LINE message to SPQR, her gamer buddy who was a Genji main, asking him if they could play together tomorrow. With his Genji and her Zarya, they could kick some serious ass in competitive.

She spun around in her swivel chair and walked out of the cubicle, almost bumping into the netto kafe nanmin who was shuffling like a zombie to the showers. This net café was a little sketchy, but it was close enough to Aihara Academy. And besides, in most cases, it wasn't randos that Mizusawa Matsuri should be scared of. They should be scared of _her._  

The pink-haired middle schooler checked the time on her phone before stepping out into the street. She avoided being out in crowded places in her uniform during school hours as much as possible. Seeing that it was past 3:30, she slipped on her wireless Beats headphones and exited the net café.

The sky was considerably darker than she expected it to be when Matsuri stepped outside. She looked up and saw clouds pregnant with rain. Opening up a weather app, she confirmed that there would be sporadic rain showers in the area. This was unexpected weather, but Matsuri smiled. Going into the first convenience store she passed, she bought an umbrella with cat ears and another bottle of lemonade.

 

x X x 

Harumi had only been walking for about a kilometer when the rain started. She groaned, hoping that she could have beat the rain before she got home. She was on a stretch of road that didn't have any convenience stores, and the nearest one was almost two kilometers away. She started to weigh her options when who should come walking down the street with an umbrella but Matsuri. Harumi pressed her lips together, took a deep breath and ran towards the middle schooler, also known as Satan.

“Matsuri!” she yelled as she got closer. “Let me under your umbrella!”

“Oh hello Taniguchi-senpai,” drawled the younger girl when Harumi was standing right in front of her umbrella. “Where’s Yuzu-chan?”

“I don’t know, probably attempting to study or something.” Harumi gritted her teeth, irritation mounting at Matsuri’s little game of stepping back whenever she attempted to duck into her umbrella. “Let me in, now!”

Matsuri smirked. “Sorry, this umbrella is made for one.”

That smile always made Harumi want to wipe it off of Matsuri’s face. Giving the shorter girl a glare, she reached out and caught the handle of the umbrella and yanked it towards her.

 

“Hey!” complained Matsuri when Harumi’s wet uniform came into contact with her skin after the older girl ducked under. “Get out of my umbrella!”

“Calm down, shortstack. C’mon, walk me home. I’ll treat you to a coffee.”

Matsuri narrowed her eyes and pursed her lips. “Throw in a slice of tiramisu and you’ve got a deal.”

Harumi rolled her eyes and sighed in defeat. She had nothing else better to do anyway. She could kill some time with the munchkin. “Ugh, fine. How come you even have an umbrella on you?”

Matsuri looked her dead in the eyes and said, “So I could stay dry after you get wet, Taniguchi-senpai.”

Harumi grimaced. She decided not to dignify that with a response and just tugged the umbrella out of Matsuri’s hands and started heading to the café on the corner.

 

 

“Cream or sugar?” Harumi asked as she held two steaming mugs.

Matsuri drank her coffee black, but she said, “I would love some.” She flicked her gaze to Harumi’s chest. “Sugar.”

Harumi looked down at her chest and saw that her purple lace bra was visible through her white shirt, which was translucent because of the rain. “I’m going to pour this coffee on you,” she threatened.

The younger girl looked like she had a snappy comeback to that, so Harumi continued, “And I swear to god, if you breathe another word of innuendo I’m going to take your umbrella and leave with it.”

Matsuri thought for a moment, then raised her hands, palms out in surrender. She smiled innocently and said, “Chill, Taniguchi-senpai. We had a deal. I’m gonna walk you home.”  

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don’t play Overwatch, in fact, I’ve never played video games of that kind at all. I watched like half an hour of Overwatch gameplay on Youtube and read the Overwatch wiki to get an idea of the gameplay in order to write the scene…but if you play Overwatch and catch something totally wrong, drop me a comment! Like, do you use keys to move, or do you use the mouse?? Is it actually possible, or is there enough time to quit the game when you’re frozen by Mei’s endothermic blaster? What keys do you actually press to exit a game? So many questions. Oh, and I may not play Overwatch, but I certainly read Overwatch fanfiction. The femslash ones, of course. Widowtracer and PhaMercy, baby. 
> 
> I really really wanted to portray Matsuri as a hardcore gamer, and it tickled me that there was a character named Mei in Overwatch.
> 
> The umbrella scene was y inspired by the Citrus doujin Hydrangea's Flioriography. It’s awesome, one of my favorites.


End file.
